Meet The Team

Rebecca set up The Big Fandango in 2020 after the death of her 16 year old daughter to suicide in 2014. Rebecca is a textile artist and was the creator of the Greater Manchester Suicide Memorial Quilt Project, “Speak Their Name” which was commissioned by Greater Manchester Health and Social Care Partnership in 2020 as a way of supporting families bereaved by suicide through quilting . She also led the Jubilee Quilt Project in Bury in 2023 and has just been funded to run a community quilt project around women in the textile and garment industries throughout North Manchester via the GM Culture Fund.

She has written and presented around her work using craft as a means of suicide  and prevention, connection and peer support including having a chapter published in “They Died Waiting” [Aldridge & Corlett 2023]

This Summer Rebecca will be a panellist at the launch of the Join The Dots Tour with Jordan’s Legacy speaking about her lived experience work around suicide prevention.
Rebecca has done extensive suicide prevention training including ASIST and Papyrus Speak and Spark training. 

Jacqui is a semi-retired social work manager who has over 40 years experience of working with vulnerable adults and those with physical and sensory disabilities and with those experiencing chronic pain.  She has a particular interest in support for those caring for family members with dementia . 

As our safeguarding lead she has spent a considerable amount of time assisting with the roll out of the suicide prevention training programme and this year in particular, focusing on in-house training for local employers.

Michelle has been sewing for over 40 years  .She enjoys the freedom an ability to sew has given her to create unique pieces that better reflect her personality and style.  Michelle believes that taking time out to sew, knit or partake in other creative arts, is a vitally important aspect to maintaining well-being and good mental health.

After leaving her career in the NHS to complete postgraduate studies, Michelle worked in local schools with children and young people needing additional support.  Now working at the Big Fandango, Michelle’s main focus is supporting young women who are socially isolated, anxious or shy, and who want to learn to sew their own clothes and accessories.  She is thrilled to be able to pass on her skills and knowledge to benefit others.